The public will soon be able to explore and understand the work of the supreme courts of America’s five largest states as never before, with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The Oyez Project at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law was one of eight projects chosen as a winner of the Knight News Challenge on Open Gov, which focused on tools that improve the way citizens and governments interact.

The Oyez Project will receive $600,000 in challenge funding to expand its focus from federal to state, making data on state supreme courts available in California, Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas. The project builds on 20 years of Oyez’s work in providing U.S. Supreme Court data to the public, including interactive oral argument recordings, case and supporting documents, and background information on justices and cases.

In July, The Oyez Project will begin collecting and cataloging  thousands of documents and media materials from the supreme courts in the five states, making them immediately available online and via a new mobile app.

All content will be hosted by The Oyez Project, a multimedia archive currently devoted to the U.S. Supreme Court. The project will also share breaking news about important docketed cases, including oral arguments and decisions, on Twitter, Facebook and other social media outlets.